Twelve South African National Defence Force (SANDF) members have been arrested in connection with the murder of Lieutenant Colonel Ngwako Frans Mathipa, a senior Hawks investigator, in August 2023. The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) announced a breakthrough in the case, with two suspects arrested on Sunday, followed by ten more on Monday.

Mathipa, 53, was fatally shot in a drive-by ambush on the N1 highway near Hammanskraal Toll Plaza while driving. The assailants pulled alongside his vehicle and opened fire, causing him to lose control. His car rolled into a ditch, and he was declared dead at the scene. Police reports indicate he sustained gunshot wounds to the head.

Hawks spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Singo confirmed the ten additional SANDF members handed themselves over to the serious organised crime investigation unit in Johannesburg on Monday. “They are all SANDF members and face similar charges,” Singo said. The twelve suspects, including two aged 36 and 51 arrested on Sunday at OR Tambo International Airport and a residence in Centurion, are expected to appear in Randburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday, facing charges of murder and kidnapping.

A vehicle linked to one of the suspects is alleged to have been used in the kidnapping of two foreign nationals at a Midrand mall on 29 December 2022, further tying the suspects to organised crime.

Mathipa, a lead investigator in the Hawks’ Crimes Against the State unit, was probing high-profile cases, including the abduction of alleged Islamic State leader Abdella Abadiga from the Mall of Africa in Midrand in December 2022. Reports suggest he was investigating suspicions of SANDF Special Forces involvement in the kidnapping. He also played a key role in dismantling a syndicate defrauding Eskom of millions through illegal electricity voucher sales, leading to convictions on over 16,000 counts of racketeering and theft.

The Hawks have indicated that further arrests may follow as investigations continue. No official statement has been released on the motive behind Mathipa’s killing, but his work on sensitive cases involving national security raises questions about potential links to his assassination.